Tito Ortiz not sounding so loyal lately

I dunno if it was the impressive Strikeforce/EliteXC showing last weekend, but all of a sudden there are fighters who aren’t looking so loyal to the UFC anymore. Of course the UFC made a new enemy in Ken Shamrock when they released him. Now Dana White’s favorite public whipping boy Tito Ortiz has changed his tune on leaving the UFC:

411: You mentioned it, Chuck said the same thing when I talked to him during the “300” junket. He foresees he’s pretty much gonna end his MMA career with UFC. You pretty much feeling the same thing?

TITO: Not now. I still see another three years of competition. Whether it’s in the UFC or if its another organization, but in my heart is to be loyal and stay in the UFC. All I want to see is the big pie being shared with the fighters. I’m sick of eating off the crumbs. I wanna piece of the pie, not just eating all the crumbs like they’ve been doing for the last four years that they’ve been collecting lots of revenue.

You might not see this as a big deal, but this is the first time Tito Ortiz has said he will consider other options. Perhaps all of the reporters asking him why he’s Dana’s little punk bitch has made him reconsider his position?

We need some big names to leave the UFC. It makes the pay higher, it makes it more worth it to be a fighter, makes it more worth it to be a GOOD fighter, so it makes the overall quality of the sport better.

http://www.fightlinker.com fightlinker

I dunno … I think big name guys are making enough. It’s the lower end of the spectrum which isn’t doing well. Look at what raising the pay for bigger fighters did to boxing.

intenso

If Tito or another comparable name goes to another organization, it makes that company more of a legitimate rival to the UFC. That company makes more money. It means that the fighters now ply their trade in a competitive market, instead of one with a virtual monopoly.

A competitive market determines a fair rate to pay fighters. Am I worth $5 an hour or $10 an hour? If there’s only one fast food joint in town, I’ll never know because they’re not going to pay me more than $5 an hour.

I’m probably the biggest Dana White fan on the internet but it’s pretty skeezy for him to wipe his ass with $100 bills while some of his fighters are getting their face caved in on Saturday night and having to go to the office on Monday so they can pay the bills.

http://www.fightlinker.com fightlinker

Eh, I don’t see it that way. You have to take into account the fact that the UFC doesn’t run on rainbows and cupcakes. It costs a shitload of money to do the kind of promotion they do and pay the salaries of all of the individuals involved in the many aspects of the business.

Do I think fighters are underpaid? The middle and lower rung guys definitely are. But you’ll never see me shed a tear for guys like Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell who get paid a half million per fight. Two to three fights a year and they’re making VERY good money. Not on par with hockey, basketball, etc. But the sport isn’t there. I just worry that this competition will artificially inflate the top guy’s pay and do nothing for the little guys.

intenso

Tito and Chuck get paid a lot of money because they generate a lot of money. That’s why all star athletes get a lot of money.

I see where you are coming from but competition is always better than a monopoly.